Why Steve Smith didn't like Panthers GM Dan Morgan's first-round pick

Instead of taking Georgia linebacker Jalon Walker, Ole Miss defensive lineman Walter Nolen, or a defensive back, the Carolina Panthers opted to supply Bryce Young with a 6-foot-5, 212-pound receiver in Tetairoa McMillan with their first-round selection.

Receiver was definitely a position that needed to be addressed in the draft, but very few, if any, saw it as pressing as fixing any of the holes on defense. Panthers' legendary wide receiver Steve Smith Sr. was even shocked by the selection and questioned why they added another receiver with a similar skillset to what currently resides in the room.

“It threw me off because now, you got some good picks later in the rounds, what they call ‘value picks.’ But when you’re looking at this defense, who gave up a ton of points, you don’t really want to add value picks. You want to add gamechangers. Is T-Mac a gamechanger? Here’s my answer to that…at the college level, he changed the game. I’ve never met the young man personally, so I have no ill will towards him. I don’t dislike him and I don’t like him, meaning I haven’t met him to give you a fair assessment. All I can do is look at his film and evaluate him. Obviously, he’s going to be in Charlotte, so I will get to know him if we choose to have that relationship. If we don’t…I’m going through some stuff…things happen.

“But what I thought was interesting is when you break down that receiver room, you have Adam Thielen, possession receiver. Jalen Coker, possession receiver. I guess David Moore is the speed guy? Xavier Legette, possession receiver. And then they just got my dog, Huner Renfrow. Hunter ain’t beating paint drying, okay? That ain’t who he is, and he’ll tell you that. You go in the sixth round and with the 208th overall pick get Jimmy Horn Jr., which is speed, but prior to 208th in the sixth round, you drafted what you already had in the room.”

Fresh Fent pic.twitter.com/ryRtpYbujc
— Terry #DDMF (@T_MeLLoWz15) May 1, 2025

While Smith Sr. makes a great point with there being a lack of speed in the room, you can't force something that's not there. Morgan and the rest of the Panthers' front office felt like McMillan was the best player available, and using that draft strategy versus drafting for need will work more often than not. Plus, the talent gap between WR1 and, say, WR3/4 was more significant than EDGE1 and EDGE 3/4.

- Enjoy more free Panthers coverage with Carolina Panthers on SI -

Carolina Panthers in familiar territory in post 2025 NFL draft power rankings

Analytics point to the Panthers’ 2025 draft class as one of the NFL’s best

Panthers may have landed NFL draft's biggest steal no one is talking about

Carolina Panthers had offers from at least 2 teams to trade up in Round 1